Indigenous family faced discrimination in North Bay, Ont., when they were kicked off transit bus

Ontario's Human Rights Tribunal has awarded members of an Indigenous family in North Bay $15,000 each after it ruled they were victims of discrimination.

Ontario's Human Rights Tribunal has awarded members of an Indigenous family in North Bay $15,000 each after it ruled they were victims of discrimination.

The case dates to 2018 when they were refused service on a North Bay transit bus by a driver with a history of disciplinary issues. The three First Nations family members are Cree and, at the time of the incident, lived in the city's downtown.

They were getting on the bus after a trip to the Northgate Shopping Centre, taking the Ski Club route home because it was a direct route that dropped them near their place of residence.

While it was a longer trip, they chose it because they wouldn't have to carry their purchases when they transferred buses. Two of the family members live with disabilities.

"It is the applicants’ unchallenged evidence that approximately 15 to 20 people lined up with the applicants to board the 5:45 p.m. Ski Club Route bus who the applicants described as Caucasian and East Indian," the decision by the rights tribunal said.

"They were the only visibly Indigenous people waiting for the bus ... There was no evidence from any of the witnesses to indicate that the transit operator refused service to any of the other passengers."